Posts

Why Should I Keep a Research Log?

Image
Why Should I Keep a Research Log?       One of the hardest things for a new family history enthusiast to get use to is keeping a research log. Filling out the research log is time consuming.   It takes away precious time that could be spent searching for additional records. Many of us think that we can remember what and where we have searched.   If we find something, we will have printed it and don’t need a record of finding it. After searching the same record set for the third time, we realized that maybe our memory isn’t as good as we think it is. While everyone has their own preference in what to record and how their research log should look, the following points should help us remember why our logs are so important: ·        Research logs give us an objective . Listing the objective of the search keeps us on track. Knowing that we are search for information on one person keeps us from getting sidetracked by information about other generations. ·        Research logs k
Post a Comment
Read more

What's Your Organizational Style?

Image
What’s your Organizational Style?             My mother-in-law is a family history nut. She is always looking for information on ancestors, finding old newspaper clippings, and writing about the newest tidbit of family news. The work that she has done will benefit our family history efforts for years to come; if we can find what we are looking for. I recently asked her about an obituary for an ancestor. I was rewarded with two cardboard boxes with the surname written on them. Good to her word, I found the obituary about two-thirds of the way into the second box.             We all have our own methods of organizing the family history work that we have done.   When we have a system that allows us to quickly find our information, we make the most of the time we spend working on extending our family trees. Having our work organized allows us to better share and collaborate with other family history enthusiasts. An organized file of information gives a professional fe
Post a Comment
Read more